Apples Printed with Couples' Names Sell for 180 Yuan Each

     In Yinggeling Village, Wafangdian City, big apples like red lanterns hang all over the branches of apple trees across the hillsides, a scene of harvest joy. In particular, some of the large apples are printed with a God of Wealth pattern, or different characters such as “” (joy) and “” (prosperity), making them stand out.

“These apples printed with text or images are personalized apples we cultivate. The purchase price is 10 yuan each, four to five times more expensive than ordinary Red Fuji apples. This is only part of the creative agriculture we advocate.” Nie Xingzhong, head of a fruit professional cooperative, told reporters. During the interview, reporters learned that the apple industry in the Yinggeling area has roughly gone through three stages: from extensive to fine management, and now to creative industry, with the added value of apples doubling all the way. This is also a microcosm of our city's apple industry.

From Extensive to Fine

“The Yinggeling area is the main apple-producing area of Wafangdian City, with apple orchards covering more than 5,000 mu. In the past, fruit farmers all used extensive management.” Old Zhang, a fruit farmer, recalled that more than ten years ago, Ralls Janet was the main local variety, but because management could not keep up, the fruit was small and did not taste good. “At that time, the price of Ralls Janet was too low, and fruit farmers gradually lost interest, so they gradually switched to varieties with higher added value such as Fuji. Now only a few hundred mu of Ralls Janet remain in the Yinggeling area.”

Although the varieties were changed, management did not keep up, and Fuji also fell into the strange cycle of competing on price. “The apples were all ripened with chemical fertilizers, and the more you ate, the less flavor they had. Moreover, there was no yield limit, so the size could not improve either.” Old Zhang recalled that at that time, the purchase price of one jin of Red Fuji apples was only a little more than two yuan.

Around 2006, a fruit professional cooperative was established in the Yinggeling area and began guiding fruit farmers to develop from extensive management to fine management, and from ordinary fruit to organic fruit. “Organic apples do not use any chemical agents, but use cake fertilizer, and the biggest difference from before is yield limitation. In the past, one tree could produce 300 jin of apples, but now it is required to produce only 200 jin to ensure the appearance of the apples.” Nie Xingzhong told reporters.

“Organic apples have very high requirements for fertilizer. Even farmyard manure must be fermented. “Because you cannot ensure that the food eaten by chickens and pigs contains no chemical additives, it must be fermented to retain only beneficial bacteria.” According to Nie Xingzhong, fine management not only reduces losses during apple growth and extends the life of fruit trees, but also greatly increases the added value of apples. One jin of apples can sell for 3.5 to 4 yuan.

Apples Begin to Be Sold by the Piece

In recent years, more and more apple-producing areas in our city have begun to achieve fine management. With such a good industrial foundation, another new form of apple industry, namely creative agriculture, has gradually stepped onto the stage. The apple exhibition and sales area at the Wafangdian City Apple Festival, which opened on October 10, was also a feast of the creative apple industry.

Reporters saw that, in addition to apples printed with text and images that pursue appearance, there are also apples enriched with selenium and other added trace elements that pursue nutrition. In terms of apple varieties, fruit farmers are also constantly pursuing creativity. For example, a small apple with bright red color and only the size of a plum attracted the attention of many female consumers.

The head of a fruit company in Xutun Town, Wafangdian, told reporters that in the past apples were all sold in piles, but now apples are all sold by the piece. Fuji apples printed with text have a purchase price of 6 yuan each, and apples with complex patterns can sell for 10 yuan each. One apple weighs six or seven liang, averaging twelve to thirteen yuan per jin, while the best ordinary Fuji apples can only sell for 4 yuan, more than three times the price difference. “Moreover, this kind of creative apple is in short supply whether for foreign trade or the local gift market.”

Upgrading Creative Agriculture

At the exhibition and sales fair of the Apple Festival, reporters also saw that creative agriculture is constantly upgrading and developing toward personalized customized apples. “This year we launched a love apple, and the skin of the apple can naturally grow the names of couples.” According to Nie Xingzhong, in order to prevent losses during the growth process, they select 5 fruits for each name, and all the selected ones are “outer hall fruits” that are easily exposed to sunlight.

“After the apples mature, we choose the best one among the 5 for the customer. This kind of personalized apple is priced at 180 yuan each. At present, the love apple is still in the trial stage, just given to some customers to see the market response. Customers who received apples printed with their own names all felt very pleasantly surprised.” Nie Xingzhong told reporters that in addition, this year the cooperative also tried producing oddly shaped fruits, square and heart-shaped apples. The templates must be made in Handan, and they will also be introduced to the market after the technology matures.